TOS Revisited - New Revelations

Discussion in 'Star Trek - The Original & Animated Series' started by Mutai Sho-Rin, Sep 29, 2012.

  1. Mutai Sho-Rin

    Mutai Sho-Rin Crusty Old Bastard Moderator

    Joined:
    Jul 31, 2001
    Location:
    Orange, CA USA
    I recently purchased a Panasonic Blu-Ray player so I could watch the new TNG discs. It also included an excellent internet streaming capability including direct Netflix access. Having not seen any TOS for over 40 years, I said "Hark!"

    Yesterday, I carefully watched Mantrap and Charlie X and came to some interesting conclusions.

    1. Shatner isn't as bad as I remembered, at least not in these two eps.

    2. The stories themselves do stand up over time.

    3. The Spock/Uhura relationship in the 2009 movie is unmistakably foreshadowed in these eps. Uhura's first scene in Mantrap is her attempt to "make conversation" with Spock. Basically, she's hittin' on him. Same story in Charlie X when she sings to him.

    4. Kirk's brusqueness with lower rank individuals in these eps foreshadows Picard's initial coldness in Farpoint Station.

    Also, Netflix must be using the Blu-Ray discs for their source as the planets are brilliantly displayed, not muddled looking as I remember.

    This is going to be fun.
     
    Last edited: Sep 29, 2012
  2. BillJ

    BillJ The King of Kings Premium Member

    Joined:
    Jan 30, 2001
    Location:
    America, Fuck Yeah!!!
    Uhura. :techman:

    The episodes on Netflix are the remastered versions.
     
  3. Jonas Grumby

    Jonas Grumby Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Jan 24, 2002
    Location:
    Somewhere in the South Pacific
    So, no chance for Mutai Sho-Rin to revisit and reevaluate the special effects. Still, if he hasn't seen any TOS in over forty years, it beats nothing.
     
  4. BillJ

    BillJ The King of Kings Premium Member

    Joined:
    Jan 30, 2001
    Location:
    America, Fuck Yeah!!!
    Depends on if he has just streaming or also has the plan that delivers discs. If its the latter, then he could order the Blu-rays.
     
  5. Mutai Sho-Rin

    Mutai Sho-Rin Crusty Old Bastard Moderator

    Joined:
    Jul 31, 2001
    Location:
    Orange, CA USA
    Uhura - noted and fixed.

    Streaming only, gave up DVDs and switched to Streaming with this Blu-Ray box.

    If these are the re-mastered discs, many of the effects are highly improved from the original airing.
     
  6. Wingsley

    Wingsley Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    Feb 18, 2007
    Location:
    Wingsley
    I can't help but to wonder if streaming will ultimately wind up being the death of both the DVD disc and BluRay disc technologies. I am uncomfortable with that prospect. I strongly suspect the shift away from disc-based player technology will ultimately not be in the general public's best interest.

    My DSL connection here isn't ideal for HD movies; I downloaded an HD movie through iTunes a couple weeks ago, and it took half and hour.

    Having said all that, I do occasionally visit StarTrek.com and watch their low-res, pre-remastered eps of TOS. I find that, in most cases, even with the "original" FX, TOS is timeless and shines with brilliance. Having said that, I caught most of the TOS-R epsa few years ago before StarTrek.com took them down, and I feel that, at least half of the time, the remastering provided visible improvements to the visuals. One thing I do not like about TOS-R is the new theme music they shoehorned into the opening titles. It's too jarring.
     
  7. 1001001

    1001001 Serial Canon Violator Moderator

    Joined:
    Nov 3, 2001
    Location:
    Undisclosed Fortified Compound
    I've watched a couple of episodes on Netflix.

    The difference is quite notable.
     
  8. Timewalker

    Timewalker Cat-lovin', Star Trekkin' Time Lady Premium Member

    Joined:
    May 26, 2007
    Location:
    In many different universes, simultaneously.
    My computer isn't new enough for Netflix (I tried and it was slower than molasses on Pluto), so I get my TOS fun doing captions:

    [​IMG]
     
  9. Mutai Sho-Rin

    Mutai Sho-Rin Crusty Old Bastard Moderator

    Joined:
    Jul 31, 2001
    Location:
    Orange, CA USA
    ^ ^ ^ ^ ^

    :vulcan: :lol:
     
  10. BK613

    BK613 Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

    Joined:
    Sep 3, 2008
  11. Admiral Buzzkill

    Admiral Buzzkill Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2001
    Yeah, the early episodes of TOS are the most interesting in terms of characterization and the evolving concept of what kind of ship Enterprise was as well as what kind of organization it represented. In many ways the attitudes are more recognizably military.

    "Charlie X" was based on one of the story premises Roddenberry used as part of his Trek pitch - then titled "The Day Charlie Became God" - and as drafted by Dorothy Fontana is extremely similar to the Twilight Zone version of "It's A Good Life."
     
  12. Harvey

    Harvey Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 8, 2005
    You can see that pitch document ("Star Trek Is...") online. Roddenberry earned story credit on "Charlie X" for the following sentence: "The accidental occurrence of infinite power to do all things, in the hands of a very finite man." Fontana wrote the story outline and the teleplay.
     
  13. CorporalCaptain

    CorporalCaptain Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Feb 12, 2011
    Location:
    astral plane
    Outstanding. Thank you. This reads like a work of pure genius.

    Some of those episode synopses are clearly recognizable. A few, in particular such as The Radiant One and The Infection, might have been developed into incredible episodes, but as far as I can tell weren't adapted—at least not with the same thrust.
     
  14. CorporalCaptain

    CorporalCaptain Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Feb 12, 2011
    Location:
    astral plane
    P.S. A couple of things made me laugh at loud. First of all, "ninth quadrant." That goof gets me every time. Second of all, "THE WOMEN." ;)
     
  15. Ssosmcin

    Ssosmcin Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

    Joined:
    Sep 2, 2002
    Location:
    ssosmcin
    That actually sounds more like "Where No Man Has Gone Before." The "Charlie" in the title hints at "Charlie X" but Gary Mitchell could have easily been Charlie Mitchell early on. Notice the premise says nothing about an adolescent, but "a very finite man." Was Sam Peeples working off a Roddenberry story idea? Did he read Gene's series outline and pick a premise that sounded most interesting? Or was WMNHGB totally original and this really is "Charlie X?"

    Just putting it out there.
     
  16. Green Shirt

    Green Shirt Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

    Joined:
    Feb 1, 2005
    Location:
    Here
    Plus, the "accidental occurrence" part does seem to fit WNMHGB better since the Thasians deliberately gave Charlie his power to help him survive.
     
  17. Admiral Buzzkill

    Admiral Buzzkill Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2001
    It's "Charlie X," but it's also true that there's no real difference in the premises of the two episodes - none at all.
     
  18. Harvey

    Harvey Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 8, 2005
    Oh, there's a little difference between the two (Charlie is an adolescent, and an unknown to the crew; Mitchell is an adult, and has an established relationship with the crew, especially Kirk), but they're undeniably similar.
     
  19. Maurice

    Maurice Snagglepussed Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2005
    Location:
    Real Gone
    To be fair, those are particulars, not the premise.
     
  20. Harvey

    Harvey Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 8, 2005
    Fair as always, Maurice. :)